A young street caroler does her thing unmindful of the dangers she’s facing on the busy street in this December 2018 photo. CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
CEBU CITY, Philippines — As early as the first “Ber” month, Cebu City policemen have already issued an appeal to the public to forego plans to go caroling despite the absence of any official order from the city government.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Wilbert Parilla, deputy director for operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) said they issued the appeal in light of the stay-at-home order of the city government, especially since the city is still under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) until September 7.
Parilla said the early warning is due to the fact that Christmas in the Philippines usually starts in September and that caroling is not an essential activity.
He added that the activity is also risky since carolers will be exposed to people while loitering the streets.
The top police official said that if rampant caroling is noted, they might issue a recommendation to the city’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to ban the activity.
Last November 10, 2020, Mayor Edgar Labella released an executive order banning caroling activities in Cebu City starting December 16, 2020, to the first week of January 2021 due to rising cases of COVID-19 in the city. /rcg
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